§ THE EARL OF LAUDERDALEMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ [The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will appoint to each of the Regional Economic Planning 639 Councils a specialist in the identification and development of natural resources.]
§ LORD BESWICKNo, my Lords. The members of the Regional Economic Planning Councils are appointed by the Secretary of State for Economic Affairs as individuals having knowledge and experience over the broad spectrum of regional economic planning, and not as specialists in any particular field. It may well be that some members of the Councils, by virtue of their professional or academic experience, will be able to give specialist advice on certain matters and the Economic Planning Councils are free to seek the services of specialists whether within or outside Government.
§ THE EARL OF LAUDERDALEMy Lords, is it not the case that the identification of commercially exploitable natural resources would assist the economic development of under-active areas, such as Scotland, Wales, the South-West, the North-West, and the North-East of England? This would enable the Government to follow out the counter-drift policy as set out in the ill-fated National Plan, which was repeated in the relevant paragraph of The Task Ahead, and also is implicit in the Green Paper on road strategy for the 'seventies. Would it not be well to pursue this point with all energy and zeal?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, I quite agree with the noble Earl. It would be as well to pursue this matter with all energy and zeal. The speech which the noble Earl made—his maiden speech, I believe—was read with great interest. As to the question of how best it can be done, we are boosting the effective work being undertaken by the Institute of Geological Science, and there was the Mineral Resources Consultative Committee which was set up in 1967 to press forward the very matters about which the noble Earl speaks.
§ LORD BYERSMy Lords, would not the Minister agree that at the present time there is probably more activity in this attempt to identify natural resources than there has been for many years?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, I quite agree with the noble Lord. This is the case.
§ THE EARL OF LAUDERDALEMy Lords, while thanking the noble Lord for what he has said, may I ask whether, if more is being done, more should not be done, in the interests of our balance of payments, in developing the resources of this country so that we can help ourselves by using our own boot straps? Also, would it not be well to encourage each Regional Development Council at least to set up some sort of committee or panel to look at the natural resources potential of their areas, at any rate as a start?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, I will send the noble Earl a list (although I suspect that he has it already) of all the sub-committees and panels that have been set up, but not by Regional Councils. Many of these matters are best looked at as a whole, nationally rather than regionally.